Story Highlights
- 42% approve of job Biden is doing, statistically unchanged from 41% in January
- 41% approve of his handling of foreign policy; 46%, of Ukraine situation
- Approval of pandemic response is 53%; economy rating is 34%
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- President Joe Biden’s job approval rating is steady at 42% and similar to his 41% rating for handling foreign affairs. One year into the Russia-Ukraine war, 46% of Americans approve of Biden’s handling of the Ukraine situation, but approval of his handling of relations with Russia (37%) and China (32%) are lower.
On the domestic front, Biden continues to garner his highest approval rating for the coronavirus response (53%), while ratings of his handling of the economy (34%) and immigration (33%) remain weak.
These latest findings are from a Feb. 1-23 Â鶹´«Ã½AV poll that was conducted during a demanding time for U.S. relations with China, Russia and Ukraine. In early February, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken postponed a planned diplomatic trip to China after a Chinese surveillance balloon was spotted flying over the U.S. The balloon was eventually shot down by the U.S. military over the Atlantic Ocean, contributing to tensions with China. Most of the interviews for the poll were conducted before Biden made a surprise visit to Ukraine and Poland on Feb. 20 ahead of the one-year anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war and asserted the United States’ commitment to support Ukraine.
At home in the U.S., in his State of the Union address on Feb. 7, Biden touted the January jobs report showing the lowest unemployment rate in more than 53 years and spoke of additional economic improvements in the nation. The poll was completed before the release of government data showing a recent increase in inflation in the U.S.
These events did not have a significant impact on Americans’ opinions of Biden’s overall job performance in February. The latest reading marks his fifth consecutive rating in the 40% to 42% range.
Â鶹´«Ã½AV has tracked Biden's approval ratings on the economy, foreign affairs and the coronavirus response since the beginning of his presidency, and the president’s rating on his handling of U.S. relations with Russia has been tracked since August 2021. Like his overall approval rating, each of these issues ratings has been stable recently.
Early in his presidency, majorities approved of Biden’s coronavirus response and his handling of the economy and foreign affairs. Biden’s rating for the coronavirus response has consistently been his highest and has mostly been above 50%, except for two readings in November 2021 and February 2022, after surges in COVID-19 cases.
This is the fourth time Â鶹´«Ã½AV has tracked Americans’ approval of Biden’s handling of immigration, and controversy about migrants entering the United States illegally at its Southern border continues. The latest rating of 33% is slightly lower than the previous 37% reading from last August, and the 31% trend low was recorded in November 2021.
The current approval rating for Biden’s handling of the situation in Ukraine is the second for this measure and is identical to what Â鶹´«Ã½AV found in August 2022.
Approval of Biden’s handling of relations with China is, by one percentage point, his lowest of the issues tested in the poll. It is down seven points from the previous reading in August 2021.
Partisans’ Approval Ratings Remain Sharply Polarized
Biden's approval ratings for his handling of the seven issues are politically polarized, much like his overall job rating. Solid majorities of Democrats approve of the job Biden is doing overall and on all of the issues measured, ranging from 62% on immigration to 85% on the coronavirus.
Biden’s only majority-level approval from independents is for his handling of the coronavirus response, while Ukraine is the only other issue above 40% for this group.
No more than 20% of Republicans approve of Biden’s handling of his job as president and on the issues. Biden earns the highest approval from Republicans for his handling of the situation in Ukraine and the pandemic response.
Bottom Line
Biden faces tough challenges in the U.S. and abroad as tensions remain high with China and Russia, high inflation persists, and controversy about migrants entering the United States continues. Biden remains underwater in his overall job approval and ratings of his handling of six key issues. His response to the coronavirus continues to be the only issue on which he earns majority-level approval.
Although Biden has not formally announced that he will seek reelection, he is expected to do so and would likely need higher approval ratings to win another term.
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